The mission of Child Soldier Relief Foundation (CSR), a 501 (c)(3) non-profit, tax-exempt organization designated by the Internal Revenue Code, is to advocate on behalf of child soldiers by serving as a central repository of information on all topics relating to the topic of child soldiers.

Recap of Red Hand Day at the UN

Jo Becker, Advocacy Director of the Children’s Rights division of Human Rights Watch reported on a highly successful Red Hand Day. On February 12 at the United Nations, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon “accepted a book of ‘red hands’ created by youth from around the world” in an effort to raise awareness against the use of child soldiers. HRW reported:

Yesterday’s ceremony took place on the 7th anniversary of the entry into force of the UN treaty banning the use of children in hostilities, the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict.

Four young people, including two former child soldiers, presented the red hands to the Secretary-General on behalf of the campaign. Madeleine, 18, a former child soldier from the Democratic Republic of Congo, said, “I am asking everyone here to help punish the leaders who recruit children, to help local communities say “no” to the use of child soldiers, and to give child soldiers the support they need to change their lives.”

In a statement, the Secretary-General promised to continue to make ending the use of child soldiers a “priority for the United Nations.”

Our collective work on child soldiers has brought progress in changing laws, protecting children and helping those who have been affected by war. But we must do more. Too many children are being taken from their homes and families and sent into battle. We must not rest until all children who have been recruited or used in violation of international law have been released, and until all children feel safe in their homes, schools and communities, without fear that they will be forced into war.